Euro Area Activity

Objective:To help students understand that the euro area is comprised of the currently16 nations in the European Union, which have adopted the euro as their currency. In January 2011, Estonia will become the 17th nation to adopt the euro.

Materials: Copies of euro coins for 16 euro area nations, Estonia (17 th nation to join the eurozone), and ‘non’-euro area nation coins

Implementation:• Distribute pictures of coins prior to start of seminar/lesson• Instructor says

1. Each school was given a copy of a coin from one of the 27 nations currently in the European Union

2. Will one representative of each country please stand and hold-up your sign.3. Within this group of 27, 16 countries (with Estonia soon to be 17 in January 2011) are using

the euro as their medium of exchange. Will the seventeen countries using the euro please remain standing and hold-up your sign, while the 10 countries that do not use the euro please sit down.

• Flash slide• Ask Fun-fact questions and capital.

Euro Area Activity – EURO Area Cards

SlovakiaCapital: Bratislava

Accession to the EU in 2004Adopted the EURO 2009

The most famous American of Slovak descent is probably pop artist Andy Warhol (1928-1987), whose parents immigrated from Miková in north-eastern Slovakia.

2 Euro:This shows the Coat of arms of Slovakia, the Double Cross on Three Hills, as designed by

Ivan Řehák.

EstoniaCapital: Tallinn

Accession to the EU in 2004Will adobt the EURO in 2011

Estonians have one of the biggest collections of folk songs in the world with written records of about 133,000 folk songs.

2 Euro:This is a design by Lembit Lõhmus and features a map of Estonia together with the word

Eesti (Estonia) and the twelve stars surrounding the map.

Euro Area Activity – Non-EURO Area Cards